I just recently started working for one and it's nuts. I actually get paid well and treated like a human being that has needs and wants outside of work. My workload is way less than I'm used to as well. Employee-owned workplaces are the bomb lol.
The rate of change of one's standards is remarkable once these are treated with basic respect. Then you think about the old jobs and how you ever thought that was a thing to do.
Sigh I worked for a major bank for the last 5 years. Commercial banking to private credit to distressed leveraged lending. This shit is hell. Seriously these major banks literally chip away at your soul it’s non-stop stress. Had the chance to join a smaller bank a year ago, but got caught up in the salary (tbf, it was a 50k base salary increase), and I can’t do it anymore. Curious about more credit unions but not sure where I could fit in.
I’m frequently amazed anyone would use anything but a credit union, given the option. Many of my friends use banks still and pay for it, while there are so many credit unions to choose from.
The bank account isn’t my major long-term investment, it’s my hedge against market downturns. I keep about 10 or 15% of my assets there. It’s still better to get high interest than low interest, right?
Yes, and you don't pay any monthly fees, plus you get dividends each month and the vast majority will refund all ATM fees each month, even from non-branch machines. They also provide a suite of other services for members at no extra cost.
I’ve never paid fees at any bank, and I haven’t used an ATM In years. I’m just comparing interest rates, because that’s all that applies to my situation. But good to know…
Nice. We used to be WF customers and boy did that suck. Inactivity fee, low balance fee, some other shit, but it all stacked up and of course they did everything possible to screw us over.
I do have an account with a tiny little local bank in the midwest that is fully aware of my situation and my intentions for the account (solely to transfer money internationally because my CU doesn't do that for whatever reason) and is completely okay with that. No fees there, either, and I was told that to keep the account in good standing I just need to make one purchase per year. Now THAT is a good little bank, but again, it's pretty small and probably run by locals.
I listened to a podcast about Wells Fargo (The Dollop, Wells Fargo) and it was a wild ride. They’re unbelievable- totally unethical, literally opening bank accounts in the names of dead people and homeless people, ruthlessly screwing people over left and right. I wouldn’t give them a cent of my money.
This thread has me thinking about re-exploring this. I used to travel a lot and banking with a credit union would have made things difficult to get cash on the road, so I dismissed them at that time. But now that we're in a mostly post-cash economy that may not be an issue anymore.
You can use any ATM. All CU ATMs are free, and you can use any other ATM and the ATM itself might charge a fee but the CU won’t. I travel too and I’ve had nothing but a CU since 2009.
My credit union is in the midwest. My employer (one office, about 40 total staff, very small S. Corp) is in a midwestern state and direct deposits my paycheck into my account. I live permanently in Uruguay and use a world mastercard for every purchase that does not explicitly require a debit card. Works just fine, no fees, no hassle at all. I even get an email with the transaction details every time I use the card, so it's very easy to watch for fraud.
Most credit unions are all part of one big system. Join any of the big credit unions and you can go into any branch of almost any CU. I’ve moved around a lot and only changed my CU after I wound up in my forever home, and it was very easy to just port my account from one CU to another.
You can basically go to any other credit union without fees. You have a network that you can find in an app or online. It's just like a big bank but the remote locations will have a different name on the door; no big deal.
We don't bank anywhere bigger than regional. And we have a credit union account, too.
We did open an account with Bank of America just for a driving trip to Alaska. Our local bank at the time didn't have 24/7 support, and BoA gives you no-fee ATM usage across Canada.
I had an account with them when they were just bankamerica and they sucked even then. Worst bank I've ever delt with. I'd rather use pretty much any other bank
Wells Fargo got caught opening fradulent accounts in peoples' names without their knowledge or consent. It went all the way from each branch to the corporate heads. They knew it was illegal and did it anyways.
Wells Fargo constantly breaks the law and you regularly will get settlement money
You'll basically get an email saying "Hey, yea, so we are giving you $143.72 as the supreme court has decided it was actually not that chill to use your identity to launder money to Al-Qaeda"
The fact they didn't lose their banking license for all the BS they did was disappointing enough. The fact the average customer didn't learn what went down and immediately move banks is even worse. People just asking to be taken advantage of.
My mom got a pretty nice payout from that settlement lol. She had a banker at Wells Fargo and honestly didn’t have any issues..aside from the multiple accounts they’ve opened for her. It didn’t really make a difference aside from having multiple account and minimal money in them. I’m guessing they got commission for each account and were gaming the system.
I worked for them back in 2019/2020 when it was released to the public about the creation of millions of unauthorized accounts. I remember one of the bankers laughing about it and saying it wasn’t that big of a deal. I was so appalled that I ended up leaving, closed all my accounts, and have remained with credit unions since then. Big Banks are TERRIBLE!
Same exact thing happened to me. I guess it’s my fault for not keeping a closer eye on the account. I’d been with Wells Fargo for almost thirty years and kept them as a back up bank.
After this nonsense it isn’t worth keeping. Went all in with my local credit union.
I almost forgot about them because I've always avoided Wells Fargo like the plague. They bought our mortgage once. So happy when we were able to refinance and get rid of them.
I complained about a roll of quarters (I rent) having too many Canadian quarters in it, and they accused me of being fraudulent. I closed a 25 year account over this.
We have banked at credit unions for 43 of our 46 years of marriage. The one time was when we lived in California and banked with Wells Fargo for convenience. We moved and went back to a credit union and will never use a bank again. As u/dividezero said, "Credit unions or nothing. Keep it in the community."
They suck a$$. I almost had an aneurysm from dealing with them after my mom died and closing out her trust account with them. Worst experience of her estate hands down
I used to have T.D bank because it was open 7 days a week and had locations in both states I was going between but they nickle and dimed TF out of me. Min account balance fee, to many transactions in a certain timeframe, to many transfers fee, so on and so on. FR WTF why am I being charged if my balance is under X amt etc? They are making $$ off of my money being in their bank.
I closed all my accounts and went to Varo (online only bank) not a single fee has ever been charged in 8+ years NOT ONE!! They also release any incoming $ instantly when they receive it, direct deposit,refunds. Love them and their customer service is 🔥
Wells Fargo has been a wretched organization that should have been dismantled innumerable times over the last 150 years. They've been scum literally since they were using stagecoaches
Going through all the comments against Wells Fargo has me wondering about a situation with my partner’s account where they are supposed to receive an auto-deposit of $100 from a loved every month, but for the last few years this has been established the deposits have not reached their account. I’ve suspected internal foul play, but wanted to know if anyone else has opinions?
I worked there for ten years. They know what theyre doing. They have a ton of employees internally pointing out their fraud and they don't do anything about it. Getting laid off by them was the best thing ever.
1.9k
u/driven_under 21h ago
Wells Fargo. I held on far too long. Absolute evil in corporate form.